It is all about Easter. This is the single defining event of the Christian faith. Where do we even begin to consider all the possibilities? In the temple? This was the defining location of faith in the time of Jesus.
In the temple of the Lord, the design is one of ever more holiness. There is an outer court where Gentiles were permitted, an inner court where they were not, only Jews of good standing. Inside, there was the holy place. Then there was the center, the Holy of Holies. This place was so holy that, according to the Law of Moses, the High Priest was only permitted to enter once a year to make Atonement for the people. And this only after special preparations on his part.
Made most popular in the first Indiana Jones movie, this is the location of the Ark of the Covenant. It was separated from the rest of the temple and from all eyes by a specially woven curtain (except for once a year, as mentioned).
At the moment of Jesus’ death, the gospel records that this curtain was torn in two, from top to bottom. The holiest place was now exposed to the world, done ‘spontaneously’, at the command of God. With the death of Jesus, the final sacrifice had been made. That the sacrificial system that defined temple life, built around this carefully segregated Holy of Holies, was now fundamentally changed.
The promise is that the home of God is among mortals. In Jesus, this promise has been accomplished for each and every one of us.
Peace,
Pastor Peter
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